Page 35 - EW June 2023

Expert Comment

Corruption in education —

India & China

SUDHEENDRA KULKARNI

HAT UNSEATED THE BHARATIYA Janata Indulging in corrupt practices in China
Party (BJP) from power in Karnataka? The
widespread perception, well-grounded in re- has become highly risky. The anti-
Wality, that it was indeed a “40% commission corruption drive launched by Xi Jinping
sarkar” in the state. Bribe-taking had permeated every of-
fice of government. be it in the education sector, military or
I say this out of personal experience. Three years ago, I the party itself, hasn't spared anybody
persuaded a philanthropic organisation to make a signifi-
cant donation to the school my wife and I studied in. Locat-
ed in Athani in North Karnataka, it bears her grandfather’s high marks in exams. There was also some degree of cor-
ruption in the appointment of university presidents, as vice
name because he had established it a century ago. We were
keen to set up a new English-medium school in the same chancellors are designated in China.”
However, added my friend, indulging in corrupt prac-
premises named after her late father. The school manage-
ment agreed. However, for two long years, the agreement tices has now become highly risky. The anti-corruption
drive launched by President Xi Jinping, the all-powerful
couldn’t be implemented because permission for renaming
the school didn’t come from the relevant office of the educa- chief of the Chinese Communist Party since 2012, hasn’t
spared anybody — be it in the education sector, military or
tion ministry. Reason: Babus wanted their palms greased.
People in Karnataka know of far worse cases of corruption even in the higher echelons of the party itself. If anyone is
caught taking bribes, that person immediately loses his/
in the education system. Without paying bribes, one cannot
set up a medical college or even get permission to increase her job and is sent to prison. Every university has a party
committee, headed by a secretary who has the powers to
the number of seats in education institutions.
The situation is far worse in government-run universi- monitor even the president. As a result, corruption has been
ties. Persons without required qualifications and compe- largely wiped out in the academy.
o who monitors the functioning of the party secretary, I
tence are appointed Vice Chancellors on payment of bribes Sasked my friend. “The secretary is monitored by the par-
running into crores. “How do they earn this money back in
an education institution?” I asked a well-informed editor ty committee at the next level in the hierarchy. As a result,
everyone has to perform, and there are strict parameters
of a Kannada newspaper. “Simple,” he said. “The VC gets
a commission from construction contracts and purchases to judge — and reward —performance. This has enabled
most Chinese universities to achieve a continuous rise in
for the university. Often, contractors and suppliers are
asked to jack up prices, so the incremental commission is standards of academic excellence. Students bunking classes
is common in India. In China, prior permission is strictly
shared with higher authorities, including ministers. Even
lecturers and professors have to pay bribes to be recruited needed. Professors are promoted on the basis of research
quality, not substandard papers published in second-rate
in government colleges.” Other states in India also have a
similar problem. Is it any wonder, then, that the standards journals, as often happens in India. Not surprisingly, China
now files the highest number of patents in the world, in-
of education in our public universities, where millions of
students from poor and disadvantaged backgrounds study, cluding in artificial intelligence.”
Since China has very few private universities, the entire
are rock bottom?
How does China fare in this regard? I got to know some responsibility of promoting higher education is borne by the
broad facts from a friend, an Indian who has been teach- central and provincial governments. “The difference,” my
ing at a technology university in southern China. He said: friend added, “is that universities are never short of fund-
ing for research. Labs in China’s universities bristle with
“After completing my Ph D from another university, I have
been teaching here for the past 20 years. I have witnessed ultra-modern equipment. Sports, cultural and recreational
facilities are the best in the world. University campuses in
a dramatic improvement under every parameter of the uni-
versity education system in China. They now aspire to be China are far more scenic and well-maintained than in our
country.”
the best in the world.”
According to him, corruption had crept into the educa- “So what’s the downside of China’s education system?” I
tion sector in China after it opened up its economy to re- asked. His answer: “There is no freedom of thought. No one
forms and foreign investment in the early 1980s. As GDP can criticise government or the communist party.”
Admittedly, this is a deficiency of China’s education sys-
began to grow at double-digit speed, consumerism boomed
and people wanted to get rich quickly. There was fierce com- tem. But on balance, it seems a small price to pay.
petition among students to enter good universities and land
high-paying jobs. “Bribery manifested itself in the form of (Sudheendra Kulkarni was an aide of former prime minister Atal Bihari
students giving expensive gifts to teachers in expectation of Vajpayee (1999-2004) and is currently founder of Forum for South Asia)
JUNE 2023 EDUCATIONWORLD 35